A stop loss is a predetermined price at which a losing trade is closed, capping how much the position can lose. It can be a hard exchange-side order (stop market or stop limit) or a soft mental rule executed by the trader or strategy code.
Stop placement is usually tied to either structure (just beyond the swing high or swing low that would invalidate the trade thesis) or volatility (N × ATR below entry). Fixed-percent stops are common in retail but are less robust because they ignore market volatility.
A stop loss is not a profit guarantee — in fast markets the actual fill can slip well past the stop price. Stop-limit orders avoid bad slippage at the cost of possibly not filling at all.
Formula
long: stop = entry − distance short: stop = entry + distance distance = k · ATR or swing_low − tick_buffer
Example
Long entry at 50,000. ATR(14) = 400. Stop at 2 × ATR below entry = 50,000 − 800 = 49,200.
How Noon Barbari uses Stop loss
Every concept here is implemented in the platform. Open the relevant docs or tool to see it in action.
Build stops in the designer →Related terms
- Risk
Take profit
A pre-committed exit at a target price that locks in a winning trade.
- Risk
Trailing stop
A stop that ratchets in the trade's favor and never moves against it.
- Indicators
Average true range (ATR)
Rolling average of the true range — the canonical volatility measure for stops.
- Risk
Position size
How many units of an asset a trade holds — derived from risk budget and stop distance.